Evaluation: Heuristic Overview
Some further evaluative stuff to consider for the redesign:
Heuristic Principles
~Drawn from the original notes on HCI (link), I've run through the generic principles and applied them to various areas of our system so far:
1. Feedback: inform the user about what is going on using appropriate feedback in a timely manner.
I think this is something we could improve on quite a lot, or at least further emphasise. The speaker on the remote should definitely be put to more use to provide feedback, particularly in the case of an emergency like the alarm button being pressed. Reassurance should be given that the emergency contact has been alerted. In the case of the interface, most feedback is visual e.g. when the kitchen lights icon is pressed, the toggle switch changes to highlight 'off' or 'on' appropriately. Is this enough?
2. Everyday language: use simple language, avoid technical terms, follow real-world conventions to make things appear logical.
Thus far, I think the Homecare system works well in this regard. Obvious phrases like Manage My Home are simple enough to convey their functionality. We've also taken extra care to use language which reassures users they are in control of their own homes, as opposed to being monitored by some omniscient system which is controlling them, as evidenced by imperative phrases like the aforementioned Manage My Home and Order Shopping. Technical system details have mostly been disguised as being irrelevant to the user.
3. Undo: people make mistakes, so it should be easy to recover to a sensible point.
Not necessarily as relevant to many of our features. The most poignant areas I think could be improved on here are the alarm button, which should be accompanied by some method of cancelling the alarm signal if it's pressed by accident (perhaps we should focus on recovery from accidental pressing rather than prevention of accidental pressing?). There's also the shopping system, which at the moment is already perceived by our 'users' as being overly complicated and difficult to figure out. If we keep this function, I think we need to make it possible for a user to cancel their order.
4. Consistency: doing similar things in similar places should have similar effects. Also, support the conventions of the specific types of computer and operating systems such as Windows or MacOS.
I think the TV as a centre for the interface is perfect - it's familiar, less daunting than a computer, and some users may already have set-top boxes which they're used to using. Interface layout will be consistent in the final version and all functions will be accessible via the four arrow buttons and enter key on the remote.
5. Recognition not recall: make next steps and critical information visible and memorable. Allow people to recognise what they should do next, not remember what it is.
Particularly clear in places like the Manage My Home interface, which uses picture icons to represent various appliances or rooms. Progression through the screens has been designed to be intuitive and simplistic to allow recognition of the next step, with a limited array of buttons at once etc. which would only confuse the layout.
6. Simple design: keep things crisp and simple, to minimise the information presented to the user. Make the design aesthetically pleasing to the target audience.
We've aimed for simplicity all along as one of the key requirements for our target audience. The shopping screens are possibly the largest flaw in our design so far, largely because the function it's intended to cover is complicated in its own right. But the rest are simple and clear.
7. Expert use: provide accelerators (keyboard short cuts and advanced techniques) that allow experts to work faster.
This is one thing we haven't really considered, but it's possibly not as relevant since we're aiming for overall simplicity and non-expert users.
8. Error recovery: try and design the system to prevent errors occurring, and when they do provide clear messages and suggest appropriate solutions.
Again, the issue of the alarm button comes up to some degree. See previous notes.
9. Documentation: it is best to design a system that requires no documentation, but complex features or very different systems may need it. It should be well organised, (searchable and well structured), focussed on the task of the user, simple to follow with concrete steps, and concise. It should ideally be available on the system so it is accessible when needed.
Although it's not necessarily within the scope of the assignment, I envisage that the user documentation for this system would be very simple and as brief as possible. All technical details should not be handled by the users themselves, and complex configuration aspects will be dealt with when the system is installed and customised for a particular household by a practised expert.
Heuristic Principles
~Drawn from the original notes on HCI (link), I've run through the generic principles and applied them to various areas of our system so far:
1. Feedback: inform the user about what is going on using appropriate feedback in a timely manner.
I think this is something we could improve on quite a lot, or at least further emphasise. The speaker on the remote should definitely be put to more use to provide feedback, particularly in the case of an emergency like the alarm button being pressed. Reassurance should be given that the emergency contact has been alerted. In the case of the interface, most feedback is visual e.g. when the kitchen lights icon is pressed, the toggle switch changes to highlight 'off' or 'on' appropriately. Is this enough?
2. Everyday language: use simple language, avoid technical terms, follow real-world conventions to make things appear logical.
Thus far, I think the Homecare system works well in this regard. Obvious phrases like Manage My Home are simple enough to convey their functionality. We've also taken extra care to use language which reassures users they are in control of their own homes, as opposed to being monitored by some omniscient system which is controlling them, as evidenced by imperative phrases like the aforementioned Manage My Home and Order Shopping. Technical system details have mostly been disguised as being irrelevant to the user.
3. Undo: people make mistakes, so it should be easy to recover to a sensible point.
Not necessarily as relevant to many of our features. The most poignant areas I think could be improved on here are the alarm button, which should be accompanied by some method of cancelling the alarm signal if it's pressed by accident (perhaps we should focus on recovery from accidental pressing rather than prevention of accidental pressing?). There's also the shopping system, which at the moment is already perceived by our 'users' as being overly complicated and difficult to figure out. If we keep this function, I think we need to make it possible for a user to cancel their order.
4. Consistency: doing similar things in similar places should have similar effects. Also, support the conventions of the specific types of computer and operating systems such as Windows or MacOS.
I think the TV as a centre for the interface is perfect - it's familiar, less daunting than a computer, and some users may already have set-top boxes which they're used to using. Interface layout will be consistent in the final version and all functions will be accessible via the four arrow buttons and enter key on the remote.
5. Recognition not recall: make next steps and critical information visible and memorable. Allow people to recognise what they should do next, not remember what it is.
Particularly clear in places like the Manage My Home interface, which uses picture icons to represent various appliances or rooms. Progression through the screens has been designed to be intuitive and simplistic to allow recognition of the next step, with a limited array of buttons at once etc. which would only confuse the layout.
6. Simple design: keep things crisp and simple, to minimise the information presented to the user. Make the design aesthetically pleasing to the target audience.
We've aimed for simplicity all along as one of the key requirements for our target audience. The shopping screens are possibly the largest flaw in our design so far, largely because the function it's intended to cover is complicated in its own right. But the rest are simple and clear.
7. Expert use: provide accelerators (keyboard short cuts and advanced techniques) that allow experts to work faster.
This is one thing we haven't really considered, but it's possibly not as relevant since we're aiming for overall simplicity and non-expert users.
8. Error recovery: try and design the system to prevent errors occurring, and when they do provide clear messages and suggest appropriate solutions.
Again, the issue of the alarm button comes up to some degree. See previous notes.
9. Documentation: it is best to design a system that requires no documentation, but complex features or very different systems may need it. It should be well organised, (searchable and well structured), focussed on the task of the user, simple to follow with concrete steps, and concise. It should ideally be available on the system so it is accessible when needed.
Although it's not necessarily within the scope of the assignment, I envisage that the user documentation for this system would be very simple and as brief as possible. All technical details should not be handled by the users themselves, and complex configuration aspects will be dealt with when the system is installed and customised for a particular household by a practised expert.
posted by Samantha at 5:33:00 pm
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